Kentucky Seeks First 6-0 Start Since 1950, Hosting LSU
Coming off its first win over a top-10 opponent in 11 years, the No. 16/14 Kentucky Wildcats face another of college football’s storied programs when LSU arrives at Kroger Field on Saturday night. Game time is 7:30 p.m. EDT and it will air on the SEC Network. SEC Nation will be in Lexington as well.
UK is seeking a 6-0 start for the first time since 1950 and just the fifth time in history (1910, 1903, 1898). Ironically, UK was 5-0 in 1984 when LSU came to Lexington and defeated the Cats.
Senior LB Jacquez Jones earned Walter Camp National FBS Defensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts in the win over Florida. which included batting down a pass into the end zone in the closing seconds. The unit ranks 10th nationally and has shown a knack for coming up with critical plays with the game in the balance.
The Cats’ new offense is under the guidance of coordinator Liam Coen, who came to Lexington after a successful tenure on the staff of the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams. With a deep, veteran offensive line bookended by All-American Darian Kinnard and LSU transfer Dare Rosenthal, the power running of Chris Rodriguez Jr. and a wide receiver corps that features Josh Ali and Wan’Dale Robinson, the Cats have shown better balance this season.
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| Sat., Oct. 9 – 7:30 p.m. ET Kroger Field Lexington, Ky. Game Notes: UK | LSU Digital Gameday Program Gameday App |
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TV: SEC Network |
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| UK | Team Stats | LSU |
| 5-0 | Record | 3-2 |
| 3-0 | Conference Record | 1-2 |
| 28.8 | Scoring/game | 31.4 |
| 399.2 | Total offense/game | 373.8 |
| 191.0 | Rushing yards/game | 70.6 |
| 208.2 | Passing yards/game | 303.2 |
| 18.3 | Kickoff returns (avg) | 19.0 |
| 3.8 | Punt returns (avg) | 4.7 |
| 42.8 | Punting (avg) | 40.6 |
| 30:27 | Time of possession/game | 28:26 |
| 47.3% | Third down conversion | 37.5% |
| 00.0% | Fourth down conversion | 71.4% |
| 16.8 | Points allowed/game | 23.0 |
| 288.4 | Total yards allowed/game | 367.0 |
| 104.0 | Rush yards allowed/game | 119.0 |
| 180.4 | Pass yards allowed/game | 248.0 |
Cat Scratches: Kentucky Defense Battling Literal, Figurative Noise
On Saturday night, Kroger Field was as loud as it’s been in recent memory as Kentucky topped Florida in Lexington for the first time since 1986. And there’s no question that the noise played a part in the UK victory.
Florida was whistled for 15 penalties in the game, including eight false starts. Nearly every one of those particular penalties can be attributed to the noise produced by the Big Blue Nation when the Gators had the ball.
While having the crowd noise is a definite benefit for the Cats, it does not come without its challenges, especially for the Kentucky defense. Defensive coordinator Brad White has been working with his team the last two weeks on how they handle the noise while they are on the field…Read More
What the Florida Win Meant for Kentucky
• What did UK’s 20-13 win over No. 10/9 Florida mean for Kentucky? Check this out:
• Kentucky begins the season at 5-0 for just the fourth time in the last 70 years (also 1984, 2007, 2018) and the 13th time in school history.
• Kentucky is 3-0 in the SEC for the fifth time in school history (also 1949, 1950, 1977, 2018).
• Dating back to last season, Kentucky has now won its last seven games. It is the fifth-longest win streak in school history.
• Longest win streaks in Kentucky history:
12 in a row in 1909-10
10 in a row in 1950
9 in a row in 1977
9 in a row in 1898-99
7 in a row in 2020-21
• It marked Kentucky’s first win over an Associated Press top-10 team since a 31-28 win over South Carolina in 2010 … It is UK ‘s 14th all-time win vs. an AP Poll top-10 opponent, fifth time at Kroger Field/Commonwealth Stadium … Second win over a top-10 ranked Florida team, also 1974 when the Gators were No. 9.
• Since 2016, UK is 19-7 in games decided by seven points or less. UK has won its last six in a row in this category, including the last four games this season … This is the first time in school history that UK has played and won four straight games by seven points or less.
• The UK defense limited Florida to 171 rushing yards and 382 yards total offense, well below their season averages of 322.5 rushing yards (third nationally) and 540.8 yards total offense (ninth nationally).
• The UK defense ended the Florida streak of 14 consecutive games of 400+ yards total offense, the nation’s longest active streak.
Series vs. LSU
• LSU leads 40-16-1 overall, including 16-11 in Lexington.
• The two teams have not met since 2014, a 41-3 LSU win in Baton Rouge.
• The Tigers have won six of the last seven meetings dating to 2000, including two in a row.
• The last time LSU came to Lexington was 2007. UK famously upset the No. 1 Tigers in tripleovertime in what remains one of the program’s biggest victories.
• Prior to that was a trip to Lexington in 2002 that ended in heartbreak for the Cats on a Hail Mary touchdown pass on final play of the game in 33-30 defeat.
• Biggest UK win: 26 (31-5 in 1999)
• Biggest LSU win: 49 (49-0 in 2006)
• Games decided by eight points or less: LSU leads 12-9-1
• UK coach Mark Stoops is 0-1 vs. LSU during his tenure.
A UK Win Would…
• Make UK 6-0 for the first time since 1950 and just the fifth time in school history (1910, 1903, 1898). Only once in the past 111 years has UK started 6-0.
• Move UK to 4-0 in SEC play for the first time since 1977.
• Push the Cats’ current winning streak to eight games, the fifth-longest in school history and just one shy of tying the third-longest.
• Give head coach Mark Stoops 29 SEC victories at UK, extending his school record after passing Fran Curci.
• Give Stoops 55 career victories at UK, putting him just five wins shy of tying Paul “Bear” Bryant for the school’s all-time winning coach.
• Be the first win over LSU since 2007 and just the second in the 21st century.
• Make UK 13-2 in its past 15 night games at Kroger Field.
Kentucky-LSU Connections
• Kentucky has three players from the state of Louisiana: LB William Nalty (Metairie), OL Dare Rosenthal (Ferriday) and DB Joel Williams (Baton Rouge).
• LSU does not have a player on its roster from Kentucky.
• UK starting offensive tackle Dare Rosenthal played the 2019 and 2020 seasons at LSU after redshirting the 2018 season. He played in 12 games with eight starts for the Tigers.
Last Meeting vs. LSU
• Kentucky fell in Baton Rouge, 41-3, in 2014.
• The game came during Mark Stoops’ second season as head coach at Kentucky.
• UK entered the game 5-1, having only lost to Florida in overtime at The Swamp, but the loss to LSU was the first in a six-game losing streak to end the season.
